Joel Embiid wants to know if LeBron James is having second thoughts

Joel Embiid wants to know if LeBron James is having second thoughts

LeBron James shook up the basketball world on Sunday when he spurned the Sixers and Cavaliers to strike a four-year, $153.3 million contract with the Lakers.

While the decision was bound to create major buzz around the league, it was never going to shift the balance of power at the top of the NBA. The Golden State Warriors still hold the crown until someone proves otherwise.

And they don’t plan on giving it up easily.

According to reports, free-agent big man DeMarcus Cousins reached a one-year deal with the Warriors for $5.3 million.

No, that’s not a joke. The team that has won three out of the last four championships added a four-time All-Star who could have received a max contract elsewhere.

That got Sixers center Joel Embiid to thinking about James potentially reversing course on his Hollywood story.

Embiid is referring to the summer of 2015 when Jordan agreed to a long-term deal with the Dallas Mavericks only to change his mind and bolt back to L.A. All it took was Jordan’s Clippers teammates locking him in a house for some in-person coaxing and a bunch of emojis on Twitter.

Well, with the NBA's moratorium period not ending until 12:01 p.m. on July 6, Embiid and the Sixers still have some time to change James’ mind.

DeMarcus Cousins reportedly suffers torn Achilles

DeMarcus Cousins reportedly suffers torn Achilles

NEW ORLEANS — Anthony Davis scored 27 points, DeMarcus Cousins had 15 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists before seriously injuring his left Achilles, and New Orleans survived a furious Houston rally for a 115-113 victory over the Rockets on Friday night.

A person familiar with the situation said Pelicans team physicians have provided a preliminary diagnosis of an Achilles tear, which would end Cousins' season little more than a week after he was named an All-Star starter.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because, officially, the team said an MRI will determine the severity of the injury.

Yahoo! first reported the initial diagnosis.

The injury, which occurred as Cousins pursued a missed free throw with 12 second left in the game, all but squelched the jubilation from a team and its fans, who otherwise would have been celebrating a fourth straight victory and seventh in eight games (see full recap).

Antetokounmpo scores 41 points in return from injuryMILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 41 points and 13 rebounds to help the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Brooklyn Nets 116-91 on Friday night.

Antetokounmpo returned after sitting out two games to manage chronic pain in his right knee. He sealed it late, dribbling between his legs before hitting a jumper over Quincy Acy and drawing a foul. Antetokounmpo made the free throw, and hit a 3-pointer on the next possession.

Khris Middleton added 21 points for the Bucks in their second game since coach Jason Kidd was fired Monday. They also beat the Nets for the ninth consecutive time.

Williams was 12 of 19 from the field and the Clippers shot 49 percent from the field, going 10 of 27 from outside the arc, to snap a three-game skid. Milos Teodosic added 18 points, DeAndre Jordan had 15 points and nine rebounds, and Blake Griffin finished with 14 points.

Grizzlies center Marc Gasol had a triple-double with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Memphis was hindered by 20 turnovers leading to 22 Clippers points.

Memphis shot 48 points, but managed to convert only 8 of 27 from outside the arc (see full recap).

Cousins posts historic triple-double in double-overtime win

Cousins posts historic triple-double in double-overtime win

NEW ORLEANS — DeMarcus Cousins had 44 points, 24 rebounds and 10 assists, Anthony Davis scored 34 points, and the All-Star pair led a 17-point New Orleans comeback in the final five minutes of regulation before the Pelicans pulled out a 132-128 victory over the Chicago Bulls in double overtime Monday night.

Cousins scored seven points in the second overtime on a 3-pointer, a turnaround jumper and two free throws with 8.2 seconds left. He became the first NBA player since Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1972 to have as many as 40 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in a game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

E'Twaun Moore scored 15 points, including a 3 in the second overtime to help the Pelicans win for the fifth time in six games.

Jerian Grant had 22 points and 13 assists, and Robin Lopez also scored 22 for the Bulls, who appeared well on their way to their fifth victory in six games when they opened the fourth quarter with a 23-5 run to take their largest lead at 104-86.

Chicago still led by 17 when Bobby Portis hit a pair of free throws with 5:06 left in the fourth quarter. But Cousins and Davis led New Orleans back with a stunning 21-2 run. Jrue Holiday tied it at 110 on a 3 with 46 seconds left, and Davis briefly gave New Orleans the lead with an alley-oop dunk of Holiday's lob (see full recap).

Murray's 38 points lead Nuggets over Trail BlazersDENVER — Jamal Murray scored a career-high 38 points, including a three-point play in the final minute, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 104-101 on Monday night.

Nikola Jokic had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Will Barton hit four free throws in the final 10 seconds to secure the win and spoil Jusuf Nurkic's return to Denver.

Nurkic had 19 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks in his first game back at Pepsi Center. Damian Lillard had 25 points and seven assists for Portland.

Nurkic played two-plus seasons with the Nuggets to begin his career, and was playing his first game in Denver since he was dealt to Portland last season. He received a smattering of boos when he was introduced as a starter and a few during the game (see full recap).

"It's tough for me," Middleton said. "He took my game to another level. He took this team to a whole other level. Today was a tough day."

Assistant Joe Prunty was promoted to replace Kidd for the rest of the year. After a slow start, the Bucks heeded the new coach's call to focus (see full recap).

Rockets come back to top HeatHOUSTON — Chris Paul wasn't thrilled with how the Houston Rockets played Monday night.

The veteran was perfectly happy with the outcome though.

James Harden scored 28 points and the Rockets overcame a big early deficit to beat the Miami Heat 99-90.

"You have those games during the season where (you) win the game and move on ... out of 82 of them sometimes it's going to be ugly, but you just want to win," Paul said.

Miami led by double digits before halftime, but the game stayed close throughout most of the second half. It was tied with about three minutes left when Harden hit a 3-pointer just before the shot clock expired. That was the start of a 7-2 run that made it 95-90 with 38 seconds left (see full recap).